Hi,
The Pittsburgh Zoo is also my home zoo and I've been there countless times, so I know it quite well. Your draft Master Plan has intrigued me enough to sign up and comment
My credentials:
- I have visited the Pittsburgh, Louisville, Columbus, Cincinnati, Buffalo, and D.C. zoos
- Expert player of Zoo Tycoon 2
(ok so I have no real credentials, but you offered for comments and opinions haha)
First off, great job and a lot of hard work is evident on your plan thus far. If you actually did this just for the fun of it, I commend you and your commitment to zoo planning. I really enjoy the updated exhibits and expanded interactivity you have. One of the largest areas for improvement is a need for additional amphitheater and show space. The zoo's current show and presentations are almost non-existent. Your thoughts on the service road running through the middle of the zoo are also A+, as it is something that the zoo has publicly stated they would like multiple times. One very important item you did not touch on is....cost! While I really like the plans, it is almost impossible for Pittsburgh to completely revise the zoo this way without a several hundred million dollar donation.
Here are some thoughts if you wanted to provide the zoo with a plan that is more feasible from a cost standpoint as well:
An easy way to see what people like and do not like with the zoo can be found for free on Trip Advisor and Facebook reviews. Most of these items are frankly quick and easy fixes or items to not change during future plans. A quick summary for you:
Likes:
1) Admission pricing (specifically annual memberships)
2) Ability to bring food and drinks into the zoo (for families and picnics) and kid friendly atmosphere
3) The linear nature of the zoo walking path (i.e. do not need to read a map to see the whole zoo) I did see that you proposed to remove the linear walking path on your draft plan. I would not recommend this change as patrons from the area are used to this setup already.
Dislikes:
1) Animals not on exhibit or could not be seen easily (this is a common complaint at all zoos, and I would propose to provide better communication at the front of the park and on the website for patrons prior to entering the zoo. The zoo does not currently do this well. The zoo could provide times that animals are typically most active and inform patrons if an animal is off-exhibit better)
2) Bad smells (again, common complaint at most zoos and I would not recommend any major changes. These are animals after all
)
3) Bathrooms are not clean and poor customer service (I would recommend renovating several of the bathrooms throughout the zoo as a couple are pretty outdated, and would introduce some type of program for zoo employees to provide better service. I'll admit even in my experience the customer service can be pretty hit or miss.)
OK, so now that we have short-term and "easy fix" customer likes and dislikes, we should discuss what the zoo's leadership is actually looking for long-term and their goals. President Baker has publicly stated several times that other than conservation initiatives, her long-term goal for the zoo is to increase annual visitors to 1M+. Right now the zoo averages about 700K annually. Her and the board have voted to finish out construction of the zoo's remaining land through the Top of the World project. I'm sure you're aware that the zoo is halfway through with the project (Islands and Jungle finished with Compass point and an indoor reptile solarium remaining). Completion of this major project will exhaust the zoo's land footprint, expand the zoo's sq footage by roughly 25 - 35%, and also provide the zoo with an inner service road as you have recommended on your master plan currently. I do not see the zoo abandoning any of these plans for the Top of the World project at this time. I would recommend leaving any of these plans as-is for your work.
To further increase the zoo's visitor rate, you can work to bring more people in from the Pittsburgh metro area, attract visitors from outside the area with a probable over-night stay required due to longer travel, or both. Due to cost and the existing limitations of the zoo's land footprint and topography, I would recommend the zoo to focus on additional visitors from the metro area (or better yet an ~2 hour or less drive to the zoo). Without data, I speculate that the visitor rate for the metro area is pretty saturated during the summer months (i.e. the zoo will probably not get a lot of additional visitors during the summer regardless of what initiatives are taken from the metro area residents). Therefore, I would propose a Master Plan subsequent to the completion of Top of the World that increases indoor space and shows/amphitheater. This will increase visitor rates during the fall, winter, and spring seasons, in my opinion, enough to push 1M+ annually.
Indoor space: As stated by a poster above, the indoor Tropical Forest exhibit is dated and needs an overhaul. Structurally though, the building is still top-notch and is actually quite large and tall. To help with costs, I would recommend a full renovation to only the inside of the existing structure utilizing a mixed-use and interactive approach with animals and plants. An example would be the Buffalo Zoo's
Rainforest indoor exhibit (it was fantastic by the way, please check it out on YouTube). I would also recommend heavy use of water through streams, mist, and a waterfall for the space with a second story overlook inside. For your project, keep in mind the Pittsburgh zoo has a unique special exemption from the city to have free and unlimited water, and already has an abundant amount of streams and water features throughout the zoo and a full aquarium due to this. Ultimately, I consider this large indoor space could greatly enhance the visitor rate during the colder seasons for the zoo.
Shows and amphitheaters: The second major recommendation I would propose is to build an indoor theater for shows to attract further patrons. The hardest part of this recommendation is location. As stated above, the zoo is exhausting the existing land footprint with Top of the World, and I do not believe removing an existing exhibit for the theater is wise from a cost or visitor rate standpoint. Therefore, I would propose for the theater to be built south of the Education Complex. If you look at the zoo's map, you will not see it, but south of the Education Complex is flat land with a walking path, an existing waterfall feature, and plenty of sq footage for an indoor space. (if you visited the traveling dinosaur exhibit the past 2 years, this is the area I'm talking about). This space is
severely underutilized by the zoo currently.
Last, I would propose two other renovations to current exhibits that you could easily incorporate into your Master Plan without "breaking the bank" for the zoo.
1) Renovate the amur leopard(s) exhibit immediately. It is woefully small and not conducive to a good environment for the animal. Leopards are solitary creatures and like to climb trees. The current exhibit provides almost no privacy for the animal from patrons and has no climbing features. The zoo could slightly expand the exhibit by digging out the hill behind slightly, add a couple of trees and extend the netting higher, and then slightly tint the viewing window. This would provide the leopard(s) with additional space, climbing features, and the tinted windows would still allow patrons to see the beautiful animals but would also provide some needed privacy from the leopard's viewpoint. I estimate the zoo could realistically complete this renovation for less than $50K if they
didn't overthink it too much.
2) Complete overhaul of the tiger exhibit. It is dated, has poor vantage points, and does not have the sq. footage needed for the tigers to roam. I'll leave it up to your imagination on how you would specifically change it. Again, I would add water features as they are nice for the patrons, the tigers, and is practically free for the zoo.
That's my thoughts. Let me know what you think
